Eclipse | COTE x Danmachi

Chapter 22 (Resignation)

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Darkness. A murky dark void of nothingness. I floated inside it. However, unlike the time before I reincarnated where I was encompassed by a harrowing darkness where perception of space and time melted into non-existence before opening eyes—in this new world, in a new body—this time I was acutely aware of my body, wreathing in pain, with an intensity that I could almost not feel it.

My senses screamed and went numb, for brief intervals before returning with a sensitivity that made it unbearable.

As if countless smouldering needles were being pricked in every pore of my body, it wracked with pain. Yet at the same time, it felt like a mountain was placed on my body, stealing away the strength to protest against it, to move. At all.

I was not alive. Or not. No, it couldn't be called "being alive". I was merely existing. Existing in a state of a constant limbo, unable to discern whether I had succumbed to death or if I had successfully killed the juggernaut after its transformation into a chimaera.

The lines between reality and a nightmarish dreamscape blurred, leaving me to grapple with the relentless waves of pain that seemed to stretch into an unending eternity. Each moment passed like an agonising epoch, prompting a relentless contemplation of my fate in this bewildering and torturous state.

Time lost its conventional meaning, where every heartbeat resonated like a drumbeat in a hollow cavern. The pain stayed as my only permanent companion, merging with the obsidian abyss that surrounded me.

It was akin to a distant melody with no resolution.

The question of survival loomed, and I began to wonder if this was the purgatory between life and death. It could be possible. After all, I came to this world. However, if I died without killing the Juggernaut, it would really be a shame.

Even if I were to reincarnate again, it would always persist, like a permanent, festering blister, leaving a sour taste against the back of my throat.

The pain and my memories in this new world became the axis around which my existence revolved, eclipsing any coherent thoughts or understanding of the situation.

In the midst of this existential struggle, a flicker of consciousness endured, a stubborn flam. It was a whisper in the deafening silence, urging me to hold on. Who was it? I thought for a moment, before the answer came as naturally as a fleeting thought.

It was myself. My own consciousness. When had I decided to be so laid back? So yielding towards the scenario I was plunged into. Hadn't I strived since birth for survival?

As I clung to this dwindling light, the darkness began to recede, albeit slowly. I became more cognizant of my surroundings, realising that I was not entirely adrift in the void.

Vague shapes and shadows hinted at the contours of people, as I felt my eyes—no, anything move at all. I blinked several times, trying to adjust to the light that assaulted my eyes like the claws of the Juggernaut.

"...Aleus?"

3rd person POV:

"...Aleus?" The stoic faced woman, one of the most famous receptionists in Orario—Rose, mumbled in a meek tone, turning her head slowly towards the bed. Her eyes traced along Aleus' face—his open eyes in particular. As soon as their eyes met, Aleus shut them again. "I saw you, Aleus."

"Uhhh—I know." Aleus replied, keeping his eyes shut.

Heaving out a steady breath, Rose placed the basket to his side on the small table, the weight of it producing a dull thud. Aleus reopened his eyes, casted one look at the object and then at the woman.